Pep Guardiola set to stand down as Barcelona coach

Pep Guardiola will confirm his decision to stand down as Barcelona coach later on Friday after deciding not to sign a new deal with the Catalan club.

The 41-year-old, who has led Barça to 13 trophies since taking the reigns at Camp Nou in 2008, is set to explain his decision at a news conference at 1230BST.

Guardiola’s men were dumped out of the Champions League by Chelsea in midweek, three days after Real Madrid all but clinched the La Liga title with a 2-1 victory at Camp Nou.

It is understood that Guardiola will take a year-long break from the game.

Guardiola spent three hours with Barça president Sandro Rosell on Thursday and informed his players of his decision to quit on Friday morning.

Pep Guardiola fact-file

• As a player, Guardiola came up through Barcelona’s youth ranks to win six Spanish Liga titles, one European Champion Clubs’ Cup, a Uefa Cup Winners’ Cup and two Copa del Rey trophies from 1990 to 2001.

• He also had spells with Brescia, Fabio Capello’s Roma, Al-Ahly in Doha and Mexico’s Dorados de Sinola before ending his playing career in 2006.

• He won 40 caps and Olympic footballing gold with Spain in 1992, but missed the 1998 and 2002 World Cup tournaments through injury.

• Having coached Barcelona’s B team, became the 15th Catalan-born boss of the senior team in 2008 and won the Champions League, Spanish Liga and Copa del Rey in his first season in charge.

• Success in the 2008-09 final made Guardiola the sixth man to lift the European Cup as a player and a coach. Barcelona followed up with victories in the Spanish and Uefa Super Cups at the start of 2009-10, going on to win the Fifa Club World Cup and retain the Liga title.

• He steered the Azulgrana to a third successive Liga crown and their fourth European Cup in 2010-11.

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